Growing romance MxM
by Metallicscream123
Summary: A light hearted story about a new boy in Hogwarts who becomes friends with the others almost immediately. Especially Neville Longbottom. Dennis Vorhis is the first person to make Neville feel like he can have confidence and a romance between the two begins to grow. However, there is a bit of a struggle as they can't speak out their words for eachother.Will this love be unspoken?mxm
1. The new wizard at Hogwarts

**The Main Character: Dennis Vorhis. Hazel eyes. Light olive colored skin and reddish cheeks. Medium length dark wavy messy brown hair that fades from black to dark brown with straight cut choppy bangs that curl inward. 5'7 in height and thin.**

 **Chapter One**

The term had already started and it has been two weeks since. Today was going to be the beginning of a brand new school for young Dennis Vorhis. He, along with his family had just moved to Scotland from a bright busy city in America where sinful acts were glorified and money was surely to be gambled away. The reason for this was to escape the violent spree of killings by the hand of a mysterious wizard. Irritated by the fact that he had to leave behind many friends he curses to himself. "Annoying ass wizard, why did he have to attack there? Why could he not have gone somewhere else?" His mother calling from downstairs, "Hurry! You can't miss another day! Your dad is in the car already." "I'm coming!"

Dennis runs downstairs, picks up the carrier containing his cat,Madge, and suitcases and hugs his mother and his dogs goodbye. "Have fun, I love you! See you at the end of the year son" She says to him as he leaves the house. The house itself was a rather plain looking home. Ivy was crawling on the walls and rose bushes speckled along a path leading to the front door. The colors were dull and dreary but the view at night was spectacular. He opens the car door and rushes inside as his father greets him good morning. The car then lifts off the ground and so began the flight. "Are you excited that you'll be starting school here? You know, you have some ancestry here. Distant, distant relatives." "I'm excited but I really wish it all didn't have to come to this. But I would rather not be blown to ashes like the victims back home." Dennis replies in a sullen voice "Hey, there it is. Wow, it's such a beautiful school! Look!" His father says excitedly. The forlorn boy looks up toward the windshield."I miss Ilvermony but I'm sure this will work out. Maybe I'm gonna make a bunch of friends on the first day." Dennis' mood cheers up a bit. "You take after me in that aspect you know. You can make friends very easily. Never really had any trouble with that" The car lands on the field. Dennis collects Madge and his baggage then leaves with a hug and a goodbye from his father. "Bye, don't have too much fun while I'm gone. I still want to be the only child when I get back." He jokes to his father. His humor is a bit strange but never fails to get a smile out of people.

Dennis is greeted by a tall bearded man who looks hundreds of years old but has a very bright aura. "Hello and welcome to Hogwarts Mr. Vorhis, I'm sure you will have a fantastic first day here. I am Headmaster Dumbledore" Dennis almost entranced by the beautiful yet somewhat sad aura the Headmaster emits, "Y- yeah. Thank you for having me. I promise not to be much trouble at all." The Headmaster smiles. " Come along now, I will show to your dormitories. The other students should be waking by now." Dennis is escorted up several flights of stairs and when they finally reach the floor of the dormitories, the boy is a bit winded. His stamina is quite poor being that he is not at all active. "Let's make haste, hurry along now." The great wizard says. "Easy for you to say, old guy. You have longer legs" Dennis thinks to himself. They reach a large painting."Fortuna Major." Dumbledore says as the fat woman in the painting hums a tune and the wall opens to reveal the Gryffindor common room. Dumbledore and Dennis reach a large wooden open door."Boys this is your new classmate, Dennis Vorhis. Please make him feel at home and help him should he need assistance with anything." Dumbledore loudly declares. Dennis, feeling a bit shy, greets his new classmates. "Hi, I'm Dennis and this is Madge. I hope we can all get along." He is warmly greeted by his new peers. "Blimey! You have an American accent. You must not be from here eh?" says one boy. "No, I'm not, my family and I had to leave America due to some issue back home." answers Dennis. "Welcome to Hogwarts. You're going to like it here. It really isn't much different from Ilvermony." Says another boy. Dennis already feels welcome and grateful as he thanks his roommates for their kind greeting and goes to unpack his belongings.

The others get dressed for the day and socialize until it is time to walk to their classes. A tall boy with shaggy brown hair approaches."Hello my name's Neville. Would you like some help unpacking?" Dennis looks up, "Oh thanks. That's super nice of you." Neville not used to receiving many compliments, smiles happily. "Nice socks, they're very colorful." Neville says as he examines a few articles of clothing from Dennis' suitcase. Dennis laughs, "Those are my lucky socks." Neville notices Dennis' pairs of underwear. They too, are brightly colored and adorned with vivid patterns. Dennis takes notice and feels a tad embarrassed "Um, I'll just take care of those." He takes the pair from Neville and places it into a drawer."Thanks for helping me with my stuff. The view really looks beautiful from this tower." He takes a step toward the window and looks downward. "Imagine falling from up here. That would be an instant death. Ha-ha!" Neville thinks this comment is a bit strange but he is happy to have a new friend. Seeing Dennis as a blank slate, "Maybe this one won't think I'm an oaf. I should try to make a good impression." Neville thinks to himself.

The first class today was herbology. Dennis is walking to class and accidentally bumps into a girl with frizzy brown hair and strong eyebrows. "Oh sorry. Excuse me." Dennis immediately apologizes. " No worries" says the girl. "Are you new here? I've never seen you before." She asks. "Yup. Today is my first day here. I'm still kind finding my way around here. I'm Dennis." "Charmed. I'm Hermione Granger. Are you going to herbology? It's quite an easy class. I'm sure you'll manage. Good luck!" Hermione smiles as she turns the corner.

Dennis turns his head to walk into greenhouse and bumps into Neville. Startled, "Oh sorry! I didn't mean to get in the way." Neville quickly spits out. "No, I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going. I should pay more is the second time I bumped into someone already. Is herbology your first class today too?" asks Dennis. "Y-yeah, there is an empty seat by me. You can sit next to me...i-if you want to." Neville suggests. The boys walk into the greenhouse where class is held. Dennis is stopped by a plump woman with gray curly locks of hair. "Hello and Welcome to herbology I am Professor Sprout! You must be Dennis Vorhis, yes?" "Yes ma'am." Dennis takes notice of the leaf in her nest of hair and her scent being an odd mixture of lavender and manure.

"Welcome Class, today we have a new student joining us. Please introduce yourself and give us one thing about you." She gestures to Dennis and immediately all eyes transfer to him. "Hi, my name is Dennis Vorhis and I moved here recently from America." The students all smile and quietly speak to each other about Dennis. An American student at Hogwarts is very uncommon so the students take a liking to him as their token American classmate. 25 minutes into class, Dennis is sitting at the table with his arm supporting his chin. He is feeling rather bored and uninterested. He glances to his right at Neville. He takes notice of Neville's focused expression and is impressed by the many paragraphs of notes he has already taken. "You must really like this class huh?" Dennis nudges Neville. "O-oh yeah. Herbology has been my fa-" "Boys, pay attention please!" Ms. Sprout calls out. Dennis lets out a huff and turns his attention back to the front. Neville looks at Dennis. "He smells like peppermint" Neville unintentionally thinks out from under his breath. "Hm?" Dennis turns to Neville. "N-nothin" Neville quickly turns his head to his paper with red cheeks. Dennis turns his attention back to Professor Sprout as she prattles on about man-sized carnivorous plants and their juice.

Dennis dozes off. He naps quietly as he has a flower pot in front of his head to conceal his snoozing. His cardigan draped over him like a curtain. His outerwear was always larger than him and this gave him a somewhat feeble appearance.

Half the day had already blurred by. Dennis was enjoying himself but felt a tad peckish. It was time to gather in the Great Hall. The smell of food permeated the entire room. "Hey Dennis!" Harry and Ron waved. Dennis smiled and sat with his new friends. "So, how are you enjoying Hogwarts?" Harry asks. "It's beautiful right?" Hermione chimes in. "Yeah it's beautiful here. I really like the courtyard. The classes are fun but this day kinda went by quickly for me." Dennis answers. "Lucky you, I was scolded by Professor Snape again for walking too fast in the hall. I swear that man is out to get me." says the Weasley boy. Then, heads turn towards a boy with a Band-Aid on his cheek. "Neville? What happened to you?" Harry asks in concern. "Draco." Mutters Neville. "That smarmy boy."growls Hermione. Dennis scoots over to allow space for Neville to sit. "May I?" Dennis asks "Huh? OW!" Dennis peels off the Band-Aid and recites an incantation. "Episkey" The wound disappears. "Good as new." "Th-thank you. Neville smiles." The others smile at Dennis' kindness and go back to their chatter.

As everyone is eating, the twins look at Dennis. "So America, what are your favorite pastimes? asks a curious Fred. "I like to go for jogs and collect crystals." Dennis responds with a gleam in his eye. "Do you miss home?" asks the other twin George. "So much, yes. But, it's safer here." he answers with a bit of a quiver in his voice. Fred sensing the hint of sadness in the boy's tone, promptly changes the subject. "What's your family like? Do you like your new home?" his face brightens up." My mom is a Healer and my dad is Surveillor. Our house is better than the one we formerly lived in but the colors are so dreary. We live near a Banshee's cave so we're usually not out at night." Neville turns to Dennis "My grandmother says she used to be haunted by a Banshee. Did you know laughing potions are effective in warding them off? Seamus keeps them in a box next to his bed. He's deathly afraid of them." "My mom keeps a few in her dresser next to her bed too. I had apparently lost an aunt to a Banshee." Seamus uneasily looks out the window toward the field. Lunch is over and it is now time to resume classes.

A couple hours pass by and the last class of the day is Potions. This class was taught by Professor Severus Snape. Ron informs Dennis, "Look out, Snape seems to be walking towards you" and retreats behind Dennis to stand by Harry and Hermione. "Ah, yes. I expected you Mr. Vorhis. You will be sitting in between Mr. Longbottom and Ms. Patil." Dennis thanks him and walks to his seat and prepares his notebook for class. "Doesn't he scare you?" Ron quietly asks. "Not really. He doesn't seem that bad" Dennis shrugs. "He'll get to you eventually. Be careful." Ron warns as he finds his seat in the dark quiet room. Dennis sits next to Parvati and Neville, nudging Neville's arm as to say hello again. Today the class was to create a "Calming Draught" potion. This potion is used to calm the nerves of one who suffers from shock or has an emotional outburst. One boy, Seamus accidentally creates a potion which gives the opposite effect and as a result received a D on today's course. Professor Snape swiftly hits him on the top of the head with a book. Apparently, that was a common punishment to failure in his class.


	2. The start of something beautiful

**Chapter Two**

A week has passed, The time is 12'30 a.m. Dennis is sitting by the window looking up at the starry night sky with Madge soundly sleeping on his lap. The other boys have already drifted off to sleep. The young wizard often finds it difficult to sleep. "I hope everyone is okay. I don't know what I would do if anything else happened. They've been through enough." He quietly thinks to himself. "Hngg…Dennis n-no… please stay." Neville moans in his sleep. Dennis quickly turns his head towards the sleep talking boy in embarrassment. "What the heck dreaming about?" Dennis smiles to himself as he gets up and climbs into bed, finally drifting off to sleep. 3 hours pass by. Neville wakes up with a groggy yawn and a stretch. His pocket watch reading 3'30 a.m. He thinks about his parents and the rumors about the Death Eaters that have been going around recently. He turns his gaze to Dennis' bed. He sees Dennis is tossing and turning about with a disturbed expression on his face. This causes Harry to wake up. "He's just having a bad dream Neville." Harry reassures his friend. "He's pretty nice don't you think?" "Yeah. He smells like peppermint." Neville responds. "What was that Neville?" Harry asks. "N-nothin. Good night Harry" Neville quickly chokes out to hide his compliment. The boy lays his head down on the pillow, staring at the ceiling. "Hnnng." Dennis croaks out in his sleep. –In his dream, Dennis is walking along the sidewalk of his former home. " S-Stop Help! Somebody please!" He hears a girl scream. He sees a window with dull white light shining from inside. He sees her run to the window in an attempt to open it and escape but a bony white hand grabs her from behind and drags her into the darkness. The light is gone. A silhouette of a man stands in front of the window, staring at Dennis, with glowing sinister eyes. Dennis wakes up. His heart is beating and palms sweating. Morning light shines through the window of Gryffindor tower onto the large rug in the middle of the room. "Ugh. What a shitty dream." Dennis remarks to himself. "Good Morning Dennis" Ronald greets his friend with a sleepy smile. "Night terror?" he asks "Yeah. I snacked late last night so I think that's the cause." Dennis assures himself, still thinking about the disturbing nightmare. "This bed is insane. My freaking back is killing me." He jokes "Eh, that's hardly a nuisance compared to other stuff that's been happening 'round here." says Ron. "Ron, come on! See you later Dennis, we have to be on our way!" Harry motions to Ron as they both disappear out the door.

Dennis looks over at Neville who is still soundly sleeping. "Maybe I should wake him up." mutters Dennis. He crawls out of bed and walks over to the snoozing Neville. "Hey wake up. We have to get ready." Dennis sleepily instructs. "Hmmm." Neville groans as he sits up. Dennis walks to the bathroom to freshen up. Neville gets out of bed and begins to tuck in the sheets. He rubs his eyes. He searches through his dresser for his trousers and school uniform. Dennis walks back into the room. With his back to Neville, he lays his uniform on his bed and removes his shorts. Neville notices the black and white striped briefs Dennis has on. Dennis then removes his shirt. His thin upper body contrasted to toned thighs. He slips on his shirt and sweater and buckles his trousers then bends down to retrieve his shoes underneath the bed. He glances at Neville and catches him staring.

He chuckles "Hurry and get ready. You're still in your PJ's" Dennis urges. Neville snaps out of it "S-Sorry I wasn't staring. I w-was um…I should go brush my teeth." He stammers and quickly walks out of the room with red cheeks. Dennis sits on his bed to read the notes he wrote during his potions class. He was quite gifted in potion making and kept tubes of potions in a small compartment in his school bag. He hums a tune while reading. "Oi good morning." chortles an upbeat Seamus as he walks into the room. "I heard you talking in your sleep. You good?" "Yeah I was just having a bad dream. I would tell you about it but I kind of forgot what happened." Dennis wryly says scratching his head. In truth, Dennis just doesn't feel much up to talking about his dream. The two have a chat and suddenly, Ginny Weasley and Dean Thomas walk into the room and Dean picks up his textbook and walks right out of the room. He seems irritated and Ginny was frowning. "They had another fight." Seamus quietly utters. "Those two just don't fit together I tell you."

Neville walks into the room dressed in his school attire. "Oh good morning Seamus." nodded Neville. A sly smile appears on Seamus' face. "What were you going on about last night? You kept saying Dennis, Dennis, Dennis." Seamus inquires Neville as he chuckles. "I don't know what you mean. I was dreaming about the umm…dentist!" Neville weakly smiles as he hides the truth. "Ah alright. Come on guys, let's go." Seamus urges as he leaves the room. Neville looks at Dennis in worry to see if Dennis had believed his fib. Dennis smiles reassuringly "Off we go, we can't be late for our Defense Against the Dark Arts class." He motions for Neville to walk with him as they go to class. The halls are filled with students and sounds of chatter and laughter. Dennis and Neville are walking side by side having a conversation. Draco Malfoy speeds up his pace and intentionally knocks Neville's book out of his arms. "Ha-Ha! Watch where you're going Longbottom!" He cackles as he and his lackeys walk down the hallway. "Is that the guy that cut your cheek yesterday?" Dennis asks as he reaches down to pick up Neville's book for him. "Yeah, he's dreadful." Neville bashfully mutters as he tries to keep attention away from him. "Yeah, a dreadful little bitch. Ha-ha." Dennis laughs as he comfortingly pats Neville's arm. Dennis flickers his wand behind him and whispers "Alarte Ascendare" This causes Draco's bag to fly upwards spilling its contents. All the students laugh and Malfoy's face is both shocked and angry.

"You didn't have to do that but… thanks." Neville thanks Dennis with a laugh. They both arrive to their classroom. Neville's desk was behind Dennis. Dennis sat in between Luna Lovegood and Pansy Parkinson. He recognized Pansy as one of Malfoy's lackeys and Luna as a good friend of Harry's. Class was nothing much but a review on Boggarts. "Boggarts are particularly fond of hiding in dark areas such as a cupboard under the sink or underneath the bed." Professor Lupin was explaining to us, the Boggart's favorite spots and where they can often be found. Dennis looked out the window. He saw Harry, Hermione, and Ron outside walking away from Hagrid's Hut. Neville rather than paying attention to the review was looking at Dennis. His locks of dark hair curling upward at the nape of his neck, strands of cat fur scattered across his sweater.

After class, Professor Lupin rushes to gather his things to leave. There are rumors about him being told around Hogwarts. Strange rumors. Dennis collects his books and as he is about to leave, Pansy is about to flick her wand behind Neville's back in an attempt to soak him with water. Dennis moves quickly and bumps Pansy making her miss Neville and instead, soak Professor Lupin. "Ms. Parkinson! What is the meaning of this?! Detention with Mr. Filch after classes today!" Pansy was surprised by this and angrily looked around for whoever pushed her but Dennis and Neville had already left.

Dennis grabs Neville's arm and quickly walks out of the room toward the boy's lavatory. "What's up with her and Malfoy? What's their problem with you? You should be more careful you know." he asks Neville with a concerned tone. "I don't know really. It's always been this way. Thank you for helping me again. I'm so sorry I got you caught up in that mess I ju-" Dennis gives him a playful punch in the arm. "Shut up, you talk too much." Neville's eyes wide with surprise, he can't help but blush brightly. Dennis smiles and quickly walks out the lavatory but not before saying, "Don't worry about it. I'm like your shield." Neville's heart skips a beat and he can't help but hold a silly grin on his face as he exits the lavatory. Ron Weasley, having been in the bathroom the entire time, witnessed the whole exchange between the two boys through the crack in the stall.


	3. Wandering Minds

**Chapter 3**

(Dennis' appearance ~ go on imgur and enter /a/Z28gX after the com)

Neville walks out of the lavatory, his mind racing about what had just happened. He did find Dennis quite alluring with his quick tongue and comforting demeanor but this all was so much to process. He quickly walks to his Divination class. As he walked through the door, Professor Trelawney greeted him with, "Oh my, it appears the birds must be chirping, yes?" Neville gave a quick smile wondering if the eccentric bushy haired professor knew of what had just happened. He found his table and sat across from Dean Thomas.

"Welcome my children, in this room, you shall explore the noble art of divination. In this room, you shall discover that you possess the sight." -bump- Trelawney accidentally walks into a table, shaking a teapot. She goes on talking about broadening your mind but first you must look beyond. Everyone looks upward as she points with her bony finger. She points at Neville "You boy, is your grandmother quite well?" she asks. "Uh I-I think so." The curious boy responds. "Don't be so sure of that, give me the cup." She instructs Dean. Dean gives her the teacup. She responds with a vague, "Oh um, oh dear…" and walks away. Neville quickly picks up the teacup and looks inside. "It looks like a heart to me." Dean says to Neville. "Is there something on your mind?" he asks. Neville shakes his head and looks into his textbook to confirm if the heart means what he thinks it means.

Dennis was in the Charms classroom taught by Professor Flitwick. "Be sure to wave your wand in this precise motion before casting your charm." The short half goblin man instructed as the class repeated the wand movement. The students were learning about the Cheering Charm which leaves one with a feeling of great contentment and if overdone, causes the inflicted with fits of hysterical laughter. "Hilda Brickswell, if you may step forward please." Hilda steps forward as she has been selected as an example of the charm's effects. Professor Flitwick waves his wand and yells "Animaequiores!" Hilda immediately begins to smile and her eyes appear to be full of joy as her cheeks become rosy. "Thank you dear, now please find your seat." dismisses Flitwick as Hilda finds her seat, still smiling. Dennis is sitting at his desk thinking about Neville. "Why the hell did I do that? What if I just made the friendship weird?" he thinks to himself, mind racing with worry.

About an hour later, class is dismissed. Students make their way outside towards Hagrid's hut. Dennis is walking down the steps when he is approached by Ron. "Hey!" Ron waves. Dennis smiles. "Hey back." "What were you and Neville up to in the lavatory earlier?" Ron asks with knowing eyes. "What do you mean?" Dennis furrows his brow inquisitively. "Don't worry, I didn't think much of it. I saw the both of you in the bathroom. It's only been a week and you've already had an effect on Neville. His tea leaves were in the shape of a heart in Divination class earlier. I could guess what that means." Ron apprises. "I don't know what to think about it. He has such a kind heart and he seems to have the worst luck here. I want to be someone he can rely on and confide with" admits Dennis. "There he is now, go talk to him! I'll see you later." Ron runs back to Harry and Hermione as she is going on about how absurd Divination is. "Neville, hey." Dennis quietly says with a small smile. Neville's eyes light up. "Hi, I'm glad to see that you're in this class too." "Caring for magical creatures looks like it could be a very rewarding career. I want to see if it's maybe something I would want to do after Hogwarts." Dennis comments then looks forward as they continue towards the crowd of students at the half giant's hut. "That's it, come on now. Come closer! Less talking if you don't mind, I've got a real treat for you today, a great lesson!" Hagrid loudly commands over the horde of students. He leads the way into the forest. "Open up your books to page 49 everyone!" Hagrid commands. "Exactly how do we do that?" sneers Malfoy. "Stroke the spine of course, goodness." replies the large man. Neville doesn't hear the instruction and opens the book. The book then lunges at him with sharp teeth. "Ahh Ahhh Uh!" Neville screams as he falls to the ground. The students laugh in amusement. "Don't be such a wimp Longbottom." Malfoy grimaces. "I'm okay, I'm okay." Neville reassures as the book again attacks and pushes the boy to ground. "Here, let me help you." Dennis chuckles as he grabs the book off from Neville and strokes the spine. "Thank you, that book would've torn me up." Neville gratifyingly says scratching the back of his head. "Well, it tore up your vest and your tie. That can be fixed later though." Dennis says as he picks up the other half of Neville's torn tie.

They both join the group that has now formed a circle around Harry and Malfoy. Malfoy looks up and points behind Harry in faux fear. "Look! Dementor! Dementor!" The slytherin boy mocks as he walks back to his group and they pull up their hoods teasing Harry. "What a jerk." Dennis mutters as he stands next to Seamus. "I wasn't around when that thing had come on to the train but the others have told me about Harry and the Dementor." Seamus nods in agreement as Neville stands behind him brushing the dirt off his trousers. "And this everyone is Buckbeak." Hagrid introduces the Hippogriff to the class as he explains about their noble and proud nature. Harry steps forward to the Hippogriff and bows. Everyone's attention on him and the large creature. Buckbeak squawks at Harry and Hagrid is telling him to back off as Harry accidentally steps on a stick. Buckbeak bows as Hagrid urges Harry to move forward and touch Buckbeak. "Let him come to you." The Hippogriff steps toward Harry and Hagrid lifts Harry onto the back of the large winged beast much to Harry's dismay. Hagrid pats Buckbeak on the bottom and both Harry and Buckbeak take off into the sky.

"It's beautiful!" Dennis looks up in awe. Neville looks at Dennis as he is watching Harry's flight and feels entranced by his bright happy expression. "Yeah, it really is." agrees Neville. Harry lands on the ground with an expression of amazement. Draco feeling smug in himself quickly walks up to Buckbeak despite Hagrid's warning. Buckbeak lurches upward and scratches the arrogant boy's arm causing him to fall to the ground in pain. Everyone runs in fear. Dennis and Neville flee behind a large tree watching the scene. Neville's heart beating quickly, his chest is pressing against Dennis' back as they look at the whimpering blonde bully. "Don't be such a wimp Malfoy." Dennis jokes in amusement.

Hermione runs forward. "Hagrid! He has to be taken to the hospital!" It's admirable how she seems to care despite Malfoy's disrespectful manner. "Right. I'm the teacher, I'll do it. Class dismissed!" Hagrid picks up the still whimpering Malfoy and walks off.

Classes are now over for the day, leaving the students to whatever they please. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, and Dennis are walking out of the forest. "I don't feel bad for what happened. He deserved it." Ron cheerfully says. "It isn't about him, it's about what may happen to Buckbeak." says Hermione with a tone of concern. Ron looks over at Dennis and Neville. Both of them quiet as if unsure what to say to one another. "Hey we have to discuss something with Professor Flitwick remember?" Ron says to Harry and Hermione in an attempt to get Dennis and Neville alone. "What are you talking about?" Hermione asks in confusion. "That thiiing that we were supposed to do remember?" Ron says raising his brow. "Huh?" Harry looks at the ginger haired boy not knowing what he is going on about. "Oh come on!" He grabs both their arms and they rush off. He was hoping to get Neville and Dennis to talk some more as they both looked quite awkward being near each other.

"Th-That uhh really was nice today." Neville says to break the awkward silence. "Yeah. I haven't seen many Hippogriffs before. Hey, do you have another tie?" Dennis asks looking at Neville's torn tie from the earlier attack from the monster book. "Not really. I had two others but I seem to have misplaced them." Neville confesses. "I have 4 more ties. You can have two of them if you like." Dennis offers. "I couldn't do that what if I ruin or lose your ties too?" replies Neville. "It's no problem. I can't let you go around with a torn tie. I really don't mind." Dennis reassures Neville. Just then, Dennis trips on a stair and falls forward onto his knees. "Ow! Stupid stair! It attacked me for no reason. How rude." He laughs as he stands back up. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Neville asks with concern. "I'm fine, my knees kind of hurt but I'll probably live." Dennis chuckles as he rubs his scraped knees.

The two go into the Gryffindor Common room. Dennis rolls up his trousers and investigates the bruises. "Looks like I'm bleeding a little bit." Dennis stands up and limp walks to the drawer and pulls out a small bandage. "Sit down, I'll patch it for you." Neville offers as he places his hand on Dennis' shoulder to get him to sit. "Oh cool thanks." Dennis watches as Neville pours a small bit of alcohol onto a cotton ball and rubs it on Dennis' knee. Dennis flinches as the alcohol stings his wound a bit. "S-sorry! I'll be more gentle." Neville apologizes as he places the Band-Aid on the small wound. "Thank you, Longbottom. Let's meet up with the others downstairs. I'm starving." They both exit the common room and get to the stairs when the stairs decide to move as the often do. "Be careful!" Dennis calls out as the stair turns. "Ugh. Now we have to take the long way to get there." Dennis grumbles. "I could give you a ride. Hop on my back." Neville offers. "I'll carry you downstairs. I notice you're limping. You shouldn't put pressure on your leg." "Yeah, fine then." Dennis agrees as Neville bends down. "Oof! Goodness you're heavier than you look!" Neville laughs as Dennis gets on. "Um excuse you? I happen to weigh under the average weight for someone of my height and build." Dennis says as he playfully hits Neville on the shoulder." They both get to the Great Hall and sit down and Seamus runs into the room with a panicked expression on his face. "He's been sighted! He's been sighted!"


	4. What are you afraid of

**Chapter 4**

Seamus rushes into the room and slams the newspaper onto the table. "Dufftown? That's not far from here." Hermione remarks. "You don't think he'd come to Hogwarts do you?" says Neville with a fearful expression. "With Dementors at every entrance?" Dennis tries to think it off. "Dementors? He's already slipped past them once. Who's to say he won't do it again?" Seamus mentions, hinting at the incident with the fat lady in the painting. "That's right. Black could be anywhere. It's like trying to catch smoke. Like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands." Dennis quietly says in an attempt to not worry Harry too much. Harry can't help but stare at the newspaper with cold palms and a racing heart.

The next class of the day is Defense Against the Dark Arts. The class was especially excited for this lesson. Everyone would be experiencing first hand, how to defend themselves against a Boggart. Professor Lupin stood in front of a wardrobe that was shaking as it contained something unknown inside. The class looks at the wardrobe in wonder. "Intriguing isn't it? Would anyone like to venture a guess as to what is inside?" Lupin asks the class "That's a boggart, that is." answers Dean Thomas. "Very good, Mr. Thomas." The wardrobe thumps. "Now, can anyone tell me what a boggart looks like?" "No one knows." Hermione replies. "Boggarts are shape-shifters. They take the shape of whatever a person fears the most. That's what makes them so-" Professor Lupin interrupts "So terrifying, yes,yes,yes. Luckily, a very simple charm exists to repel a boggart. Let's practice it now. Without wands, please." He instructs the class as he intones, "After me, Riddikulus!" The class repeats. "Very good, a little louder please. Riddikulus!" The students again, repeat the incantation.

"The incantation itself, isn't enough. What really finishes a boggart is laughter. You need to force it to assume a form you find truly amusing. Let me explain. Neville, would you join me please?" Professor Lupin calls the boy forward. Neville steps forward toward the professor. "Neville, what frightens you most of all?" "Professor Snape." He replies. The class giggles. "Professor Snape. Yes, frightens all. Now, I believe you live with your grandmother?" "Yes, but I don't want that boggart to turn into her, either." Professor Lupin chuckles softly. "I want you to picture her clothes—only her clothes, very clearly, in your mind. We will see what you see. Wand at the ready." He opens the wardrobe and the boggart has already taken form of the feared professor Snape. The faux Snape approaches, Neville points his wand at his fear and yells, "Riddikulus!" The boggart Snape suddenly appears to be wearing women's clothing. The room erupts with laughter. "Now everyone form a line! Form a line!"

As everyone gets into formation, Ron has found his way at the front of the line. "I want everyone to picture the thing they fear the very most and turn into something funny." Lupin instructs as he plays a record with upbeat music to set the mood. "Next, Ron!" Ron slowly approaches the boggart. "Concentrate, Ron. Face your fear, be brave." The boggart takes the form of an enormous spider. Ron's face twists in fear. "Wand at the ready Ron, wand at the ready." Ron points his wand at the boggart and, "Riddikulus!" skates appear on the spider's legs causing it to struggle to maintain balance and fall. The room again erupts with laughter. Professor Lupin has a wide grin on his face. "Excellent, Ms. Padma, next!" The girl approaches with a nervous smile and her fear is revealed when the boggart takes form of a giant cobra. "Riddikulus!" The cobra has now turned into a giant Jack-in the- box. She laughs as she skips to the back of the room. "Marvelous, Padma! Next, Seamus!" Seamus briskly steps forward, confident in himself. The Jack- in the-box transforms into a Banshee which startles several students in the class. "Worry not everyone, her screams won't harm you. Want at the ready Seamus!" Lupin informs. "Riddikulus!" The boggart banshee clutches her throat as she tries to sing but instead comes a silly wail. Seamus smiles greatly as his fear of banshees seems to have been conquered. Hermione is called forward. Her boggart is greatly amusing as it takes the form of Professor McGonagall telling her that she has failed her exams. "Riddikulus!" She cries out and McGonagall then appears to be holding an award reading Hermione's name. She smiles proudly as she struts to the back of the room. " your turn!" Dennis steps forward—the fake McGonagall transforms into a grotesque maggot ridden Zombie. Zombies are a common dark creature in America and he has only ever encountered them twice. The laughter in the room ceases as the students are fearful being that they have not actually seen a zombie before. It is basically unheard of in this region to come across a member of the living dead. Dennis points his wand at the zombie. "Riddikulus!" The zombie transforms into a skeleton with a top hat tapping on his bones like a xylophone. The cheery atmosphere returns into the classroom.

"Potter! You're up." Professor Lupin calls him to the front. Harry smiles in amusement but it quickly dissipates as the boggart transforms into a Dementor. Professor Lupin stands in front of Harry. "Here!" he yells. The boggart transforms into what appeared to be a full moon in a starless night sky. "Riddikulus!" The moon transforms into a balloon as it shoots around the room much to everyone's amusement. He points his wand at the wardrobe and the boggart flies in and the door is shut. "Right, uh sorry about that. That's enough for today. Collect your books from the back of the class. That's the end of the lesson. Sorry!" Dennis notices Harry still staring at the wardrobe with a blank expression. "Come on, he calls out to Seamus, Neville, and Dean. The four boys collect their belongings and walk to their dormitory. "Did you think it a bit odd when Professor Lupin stepped in front of Harry earlier?" Dean blurts out. "Aye, his boggart looked like the moon?" Seamus says as the four boys wonder why Lupin would have a fear of the moon. They reach their room. "Such a long day!" Dennis declares as he releases Madge from her cage and scoops her up in his arms as she tries to squirm out— he has her tightly pinned to his chest. Neville lies on his bed as he giggles to himself at the image of Snape in his grandmother's clothes.

Seamus pulls off his robe and his vest, "I'm going to head off for the shower. See you guys later." "Yeah, I'm going to go see what Ginny is up to. I want to surprise her with some chocolate frogs." Dean smiles as he walks out the door passing the fat lady painting. Dennis turns to Neville "Hey, want to play a game?" "Yeah sure, what do you have in mind?" Neville sits up directing his attention to Dennis. "Um, I don't know—what about Wizards Chess?" "Okay, only if you want to lose." Neville jokes as he challenges his friend. Dennis releases Madge from his arms as he and Neville set up the game board.

The boys are midgame. Neville looks up at Dennis as he has made his move. The game is at a critical tie. One wrong move and loss is inevitable. Dennis moves his knight. "Oi, guess what?" Neville says with a gleam in his eye. "Pft— what? Are you gonna ask for mercy?" Dennis smugly smiles. "Checkmate." Neville yells as he raises his arms in a cheering motion. "Whatever. I allowed you to win out of the kindness of my own heart." Dennis joked. He looked at Neville. The boy often gets teased about his awkwardly crooked teeth but Dennis found it cute and liked it when Neville smiled. "Hey winner, I have some custard cookies. Wanna eat some with me?" Dennis offers. The two boys enjoy the sweets as Seamus walks into the room looking refreshed. "Might I have some biscuit?" He joins the two boys on the floor as he picks up a cookie. Seamus takes notice of the finished chess game. "Who won?" he asks. "Neville did. But to be fair, I could have destroyed him if I wanted to." Dennis responds as he breaks off a piece of the confectionery for his cat. Neville observes Dennis feeding Madge. "You're just like Filch." He jokes. "Shut up, cats are great. Ms. Norris could never compare to my little Madge though." Dennis laughs. Harry, Ron and Dean walk into the room. In his hand, Dean is holding a striped box containing jellybeans. Neville and Seamus both grinning. "Is that what I think it is?" Seamus asks with a chuckle. Dean looks at Seamus. "Aye, the every flavor jelly beans!" Dennis was a bit excited as he had only eaten the jellybeans once at a family gathering 4 years ago. The 6 boys gather in a circle on the floor of the room. Dean takes the first bean, he slowly lifts it to his mouth. "Yes! Apple!" Everyone huffs out in disappointment. Ron grabs a bean. "Blimey, it tastes like Pepper!" He coughs while laughing. The boys have fun together until it is time to gather for dinner in the Great Hall.

The group walks out the door. Neville swings his hand and accidentally grazes Dennis' backside. "Sorry!" He abruptly apologizes. Dennis laughs and playfully jeers, "Jeez, buy me a drink, first why don't ya" They sit at the long table with all their classmates as they enjoy their meal and each other's company. All the teachers are at their table in the front of the room but Professor Lupin is notably missing. Harry, Hermione, and Ron scoff as Malfoy was still pretending his arm was badly injured from earlier that day. A red note comes flying in toward Dennis. He has received a howler from his parents. Everyone, at the table turns to him, "Oooooo, looks like you got a howler!" Seamus remarks awaiting the message. "Hi son, we hope you're doing well and we hope you're having fun at school…" The message starts sweetly enough. "Just how many times have your father and I asked you to return that skull you found during your class trip last year?! Now, we have a damn ghost causing chaos here and it's getting to be a pain just to get rid of him! We have always told you to never remove someone's remains from their location of origin! He broke my 20 year old vintage plates and bent most of our silverware! If we can't get rid of this, you will be dealing with it when you come home! And YOU'RE GROUNDED FOR A MONTH!" The howler rips itself into several tiny pieces. Dennis shrugs his shoulders and laughs "Oh well, it can't be helped. I forgot to return it back to the burial grounds."


End file.
